When I was a college student, there was a program through our church called, "Naomi's Wealth". In a nutshell, it involved younger women being paired with older woman so that they could share their "wisdom". The idea didn't appeal to me in the SLIGHTEST - I already had a mom and didn't want some older woman telling me how I should run my life differently. I kind of had that attitude towards being personally mentored in general - only a tiny handful of women in my life had earned the respect from me that I would want to model my life after theirs. Sadly, I never really got to enter into a mentor relationship with any of them - at least not for any length of time.
One of those woman's name was Laurie. She was basically a half generation above me - less than 15 years older, for sure - and I admired her tremendously. She had become a widow, leaving her with three young kiddos, and then later married someone I admired who had helped lead our college group - and now they have two more young children - my kids' ages. Laurie was (is- she moved so I don't get to run into her anymore) down-to-earth, transparent, fun, and above all, constantly seeking the Lord. I learned so much from her testimony as well as nearly every conversation I had with her. I had the opportunity to be part of a Bible Study with her for one sweet year, but then, shortly after, their family moved.
Fast forward to September of this year. I recieved a phone call from the Director of Womens' ministy and was asked to call her back. I've got to admit I always feel a bit of nervousness at that as I worry about how I might end up being challenged by her to do something out of my comfort zone. In this case, she asked if I would consider being a mentor to a college-aged gal. I said "yes" because God has put the collegians on both of John and I's heart lately, and felt like this might be a good start. However, I still admit, there was some major concern over what kind of individual I might be paired with - whether or not we'd hit it off or have anything in common at all, and of course, how they would perceive me - as I had certainly had strong feelings about the whole thing when I was their age.
So, the day came when I got in the mail the letter telling me the name of the student I was to meet with. Imagine my shock when I actually recognized the name - Lindsay - daughter of the above mentioned "Laurie". Wow, God is good. It is so totally wild to me that we could end up going full-circle, although me being considered the "mentor" still cracks me up regarding my "wisdom to share". But, one thing I do having going for me, is that I do love talking, and God has taught me a lot, so, hopefully, that just might be enough......
At ten this morning, Lindsay and I met at Full City. Though we have met before (with Laurie), it's been a long time. I can't tell you how happy I was leaving our meeting..... I adore Lindsay and feel like I went back in time 14 years (the difference in our ages), upon talking to her. She is in leadership positions all over the place within the collegiate ministry, so our meeting time isn't destined to be all about teaching or Bible Studies, but rather friendship and prayer requests - just perfect as far as I am concerned.
Jodi was talking in her blog about the amazing feeling of meeting with someone you know so well, but rarely get to see and getting right to the "meat" of it (being a vegetarian - she didn't use that phrase, but I think that was her point). I so agree, but also have to add my feelings of more-or-less meeting someone for the first time, and still being able to dive deep. I think that is a sure-fire sign that a great friendship is beginning, and I couldn't be more delighted......
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